TEL AVIV – Foreigners may remember former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert as the leader who, despite leaving a wake of destruction in two wars against Islamic militants in Lebanon and Gaza, re-engaged Palestinians in serious peace talks for the first time in nearly a decade.

But if the indictment against Mr. Olmert yesterday on charges of fraud and breach of public trust isn't debunked by his lawyers, the former leader will go down in Israeli history books as the local version of former President Richard Nixon.

The indictment comes as no surprise to Israelis. The 61-page charge sheet submitted to the Jerusalem District Court seemed an inevitable outcome of a series of marathon police interrogations that forced Olmert to step down nearly a year ago – well before the end of his term in office.

Israelis have already watched the public reputation of a former president and finance minister implode in the face of a public indictment on corruption charges. Despite that, the new inglorious milestone for the Jewish state was not lost on commentators. For the first time, a former prime minister will be dragged into court to face multiple charges of fraud.